Science in action: Swiss technical universities are getting courted by an increasing number of international companies. Powerhouses like Microsoft, IBM and Disney all have running 'brain-power' contracts with the technical schools in both Zurich and Lausanne. But are corporations simply colonising academic minds? Swiss News looks at these emerging ventures from both sides.

Swiss News › Nbr. 2009, January 2009

Author: Heddema, Renske

Position:: BUSINESS FEATURE

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BUSINESS FEATURE

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Science in action: Swiss technical universities are getting courted by an increasing number of international companies. Powerhouses like Microsoft, IBM and Disney all have running 'brain-power' contracts with the technical schools in both Zurich and Lausanne. But are corporations simply colonising academic minds? Swiss News looks at these emerging ventures from both sides.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

The pink villa housing the Disney Research Lab is just a few steps away from the Institute of Visual Computing of the ETH (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology) Zurich. The staircase is apple green. Each room has its own theme and colour, derived from different Disney Classics movies. In one, two young scientists are unpacking a huge picture from 101 Dalmatians.

Disney people regularly arrive from California for short stays, and there is a daily exc...

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